[common] A collection of arcane, unpublished, and (by implication)
mostly ad-hoc techniques developed for a particular application or systems
area (compare black magic). VLSI design and
compiler code optimization were (in their beginnings) considered classic
examples of black art; as theory developed they became
deep magic, and once standard textbooks had been written, became
merely heavy wizardry. The huge proliferation of
formal and informal channels for spreading around new computer-related
technologies during the last twenty years has made both the term black art and what it describes less common
than formerly. See also voodoo programming.